Producer: Jerry Weintraub, David Barron, Alan Riche & Tony Ludwig
Director: David Yates
Star Cast: Alexander Skarsgård, Samuel L. Jackson, Margot Robbie, Djimon Hounsou, Jim Broadbent & Christoph Waltz
Music: Rupert Gregson – Williams & Hans Zimmer
Several movies have been crafted on the fictional character of Tarzan, which was originally conceived by popular author Edgar Rice Borroughs, till this date. But of course the latest version namely The Legend Of Tarzan directed by well – known director David Yates does a complete volte face as the legendary character Tarzan no longer resides in the dense jungle as an uneducated beastly character albeit a hunted species. But of late he has shifted & resides in the city. What happens to the Tarzan of the city is well worth watching on the celluloid silver screen at least once.
The original story of Tarzan is about a boy born & raised in the jungles of Africa. So the moment we hear the name Tarzan, we are fast taken back to our childhood when we would hear the story of a young boy who was raised by the beasts of the forest as one of them, until he falls in love with another beautiful girl, who just like him feels more at home in the dense jungles. However, The Legend Of Tarzan is a different story altogether. Unlike the popular story, this film starts off with Tarzan having given up his wild ways for a more peaceful & comfortable life in London as John Clayton III aka Lord Greystoke (Alexander Skarsgard) with his beloved wife Jane (Margot Robbie) at his side. But this time of peacefulness is fast shattered when he is invited back to the Congo to serve as a trade emissary of the Parliament, to investigate the activities at a mining encampment. Unaware that he is a pawn in a deadly convergence of greed & revenge, masterminded by the Belgian Captain Leon Rom (Christoph Waltz), Tarzan undertakes the journey putting all at stake.
Director David Yates efforts to change the entire scenario in The Legend Of Tarzan is laudable but the mnillion dollar question is will the modern day version of Tarzan be acceptable to today’s cine goers? Here, it must be pointed out that despite a story that keeps looping from past to present back & forth, director David Yates does well to give each timeline equal importance while simultaneously merging the 2 sans the usual confusion.
Performance wise Alexander Skarsgard as Tarzan is ok but he does fall short of the expectation bar that other past actor have raised who have literally lived the role and done complete justice to it. Margot Robbie as Jane seems to have been completely miscast. Christoph Waltz as Captain Leon Rom is perfect to the hilt. No doubt all the other actors have made their presence felt it is Samuel L Jackson’s character that is totally out of place.
Tail Piece: The Legend Of Tarzan maybe good enough as a one time watch but it fails to live upto the expectation of the Gen Next.
